Besides, the point Durant was making is actually pretty relevant. Tom Ziller of SB Nation wrote a great piece about how Kawhi Leonard is as responsible for Kawhi Leonard’s success as anyone else. But there is something to be said about what an organization and environment does to help cultivate that talent. I wrote about this a while ago, but David Thorpe has this great thing he calls “royal jelly” which is essentially that special something inside a player that makes him great regardless of where he is or the situation he’s in. LeBron, Durant, Kobe, Rose, Duncan, etc.

But sometimes, a team has to help with that royal jelly. I think Russell Westbrook is a good example. Say he was drafted by the Bucks and ended up in a losing, dysfunctional situation. He had a coach and front office that wasn’t sold on his position, and wasn’t patient enough to let him play through the hard parts. Westbrook’s work ethic is absurd, but he needed a safe, encouraging environment to explode the way he has. Otherwise, he might have become his own worst enemy.

I think some of that is applicable with Leonard and the Spurs. He stepped into a situation where he could let his skill set (defense) put him on the floor, while he developed the rest of his game with one of the best coaching staffs in the world. Compare Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to Leonard. Similar players, with similar skills. One was just named Finals MVP. The other a lot of people see as a bust. Leonard had his shot overhauled by shooting coach Chip Engelland (EDIT: and, it needs to be said, Chad Forcier) and now is a legit offensive threat. Kidd-Gilchrist’s shot still looks like a full body dry heave. What if their roles were reversed?

Leonard is uniquely gifted, with a voracious work ethic of his own, and has clearly grown from working with arguably the best coaching and developmental staff in the league. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship that serves as an example of a model that none other than Jerry West said other NBA teams would be foolish not to emulate.

But at the same time, Durant’s comments illustrate that even basketball players can fall into the trap of looking at scoring averages and automatically assigning supremacy.

Not that George isn’t an elite defender as well — indeed, he made first-team All-Defensive — but few players have the same kind of impact as Leonard. And one could easily argue that the Spurs’ system, as coach Gregg Popovich constantly notes, has the dual impact of stunting individual stats while enhancing overall performance.

At any rate, it’s a debate that has already been ongoing with Leonard for the past few years — just how good is he, and what is his ceiling? The Church of Political Correctness shouldn’t preclude players from participating if they so choose.